Murphy's Law
by Rhadeya
Summary: Jamie's undercover once again and he'll need all the help he can get as this time, he may not be able to get out alive... *Please R&R*
1. Valentine's Snow

_**Author's note**__: I don't own 'em, I just take them out to play a little ;) Murphy's Law (known as 'Sod's Law' in the UK) states "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong" and this does seem to be the case for the Reagan family quite often ;)_

_**Was gonna start in Season 2 but it'll now be based after Season 3 so it may yet end up being A/U depending on where the writers go in Season 4 lol**_

* * *

**1. ****Valentine's Snow**

The first flakes of new snow started to fall on the thirteenth day of February, making Jamie Reagan sigh in exasperation as he stared out of the window in his loft. This would be the fourth year that he would spend Valentine's Day alone but as he was working undercover, he couldn't even take a tour that night to distract him from his bachelor woes. What he hadn't planned on was that the snow, which had started to melt by mid-January, would be back again in earnest to make an already difficult job that little bit harder. After recent events, especially the current undercover assignment, he would have preferred a nice, quiet night with the family but it seemed God was not going to be on his side this time. Shaking his head, he placed his laptop back onto the table and finished his drink, putting his empty glass in the kitchen on his way to bed. As he turned out the light beside his bed, he closed his eyes and offered a small prayer that tomorrow would go quickly and quietly.

)()()()()()()()()(

February 14th, commonly known as Valentine's Day, dawned clear and bright in New York. A thick blanket of snow covered the ground, broken here and there by pedestrian tracks and the odd bicycle, but largely untouched in many parts of the city. Jamie looked out of the window and smiled ruefully, loving the sight of fresh snow, before the city workers cleared the pavements and destroyed a little of the magic that snow had always held for the youngest of the adult Reagans. While a few years ago he had been engaged, albeit not always happily, he had found he'd never had any real issues with women. But now, staring at his fourth Valentine's Day alone, he wondered again whether he had let the best thing that had ever happened to him walk out of his life. With an ironic laugh, he moved towards the shower, wanting to go for an early morning run before the snow became too disturbed by people walking through it.

)()()()()()()()()(

The cold air tasted clean and fresh as Jamie drew in long breaths during his run, smiling at the crunch of snow beneath his sneakers and the barest warmth from the sun on his skin as it rose high into the clear blue sky. When he ran on his own, he felt he was free from the worries of the job, his bachelor lifestyle, his grief for the brother and the partner whose murders he would never fully get over and his jealousy towards the brother who seemed to have everything. His mind on other things, he took little notice of where he was heading until a scream pulled him from his introspection. With a start he realised he had unintentionally headed towards a seedier part of town, somewhere he had been spending a lot of time recently with his undercover assignment. Pushing the memories of some of the things he had done while undercover, he switched into his 'cop head' and followed the now muffled screams coming from nearby. Carefully peeking around a corner, he spotted two men hitting someone hidden from Jamie's view. With a curse, he realised he had gotten so into his undercover persona that he had stopped carrying his off-duty piece. Taking a deep breath, he decided to play the scene in his Jackson character, hoping that the reputations of his new 'friends' preceded him. Breaking into a lopping jog, he rounded the corner and headed towards the men, making no attempt to hide his approach. A few feet from the men he stopped, clearing his throat in a way that sounded as menacing as he could. The two men rounded on him, hands placed on pistols in their belts and ready to draw them if their inspection of him proved him to be a liability. Several tense, silent moments passed as the men studied him before one of them suddenly recognised him. With a whispered few words to his partner in crime, the larger of the two backed off slightly, moving his hand from his gun and raising it a short way into the air.

"Sorry man, didn't know you was gonna be down this way," the larger one apologised, tugging at the sleeve of his partner to move away.

"What ya doing?" Jamie asked, his stance arrogant and his tone bored.

"Boss wanted us to take care of this bitch," the second man answered, finally getting his partner's hints and backing away.

"What'd the bitch do?" the young Reagan asked, sounding like he really couldn't care less.

"Been skimmin' off the profits from the new bar," the first answered, grabbing the figure they'd been hitting and throwing her to the ground between them and Jamie. It took all of his strength to remain still and not rush to the woman's aid, but he had a cover to maintain.

"Really? Well then, she has some payin' back to do," he leered, hating himself for every word out of his mouth.

"You wanna get a little bit a action?" the second leered, raising his eyebrows suggestively as he looked at the woman cowering in the snow before him.

"Reckon I do," Jamie agreed, moving towards the woman. Grabbing her arm, he hauled her roughly to her feet and looked over at the two men. "But I'll be doing it alone," he warned, dismissing them with a nod of his head. As he dragged the woman over to the side of the alley, clamping a hand over her mouth to stop her from screaming, he heard the men muttering as they left with one saying clearly _"Heard he's a sadistic son of a bitch, she ain't gonna be a problem no more"_ and both laughing cruelly as they got into their car and roared away.

Taking a deep breath to swallow back the bile in his throat, Jamie turned to the woman he held against the cold stone wall.

"I'm going to remove my hand if you promise not to scream?" he asked softly, his normal tone and accent restored. When the woman nodded her head, he slowly removed his hand and released his grip on her arm.

"What are you gonna do to me?" she asked timidly, her accent surprising him.

"Are you a tourist?" he wanted to know, the unspoken question of her immigration status clear in his voice.

"No," she shook her head, pressing back against the wall away from him. "And I'm not here illegally either," she told him, answering his unspoken question.

"Really?" his tone doubting.

"Yes, Officer," she confirmed, shaking her head slowly.

"What makes you say that?" he demanded, his breath hitching in his throat at the thought he might have been caught out.

"Because it's obvious you're a cop," she muttered, drawing in a pained breath. "Look, don't worry, I'm not gonna blow your cover. If I was, I'd have done it months ago when you showed up at Maggie's Bar that first night."

"You've known that long?" he asked, incredulous.

"Yea, thought that night that maybe you were just there for a drink but when you started turning up at family events, I knew you were undercover, investigating the family," she confessed with a shrug.

"You say family as if they're your family?" he started, leaving the question unspoken.

"They are," she said, confirming his suspicions. "Eoin Moran, known to most as 'Uncle Owen', is actually my flesh and blood uncle."

"Who are you?" Jamie demanded, his throat dry and his heart pounding with fear.

"I'm Eleanor Moran and my father, Joseph Moran was brother to the leader of one of New York's largest and most brutal crime families."

"Your father was Joe Moran?" Jamie gasped, his legs weak as he realised just who stood before him and how much trouble he now found himself in, the kind of trouble that could get him killed...


	2. Stepping Up

_**Author's note**__: I don't own 'em, I just take them out to play a little ;) Murphy's Law (known as 'Sod's Law' in the UK) states "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong" and this does seem to be the case for the Reagan family quite often ;)_

_**So poor Jamie has stumbled into the middle of a world of hurt... what will he do now?**_

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**2. ****Stepping Up**

Jamie Reagan stared at the woman in front of him in shocked horror, a feeling of dread threatening to overwhelm him as the full situation dawned on him. He had just inadvertently rescued the niece of one of the most violent and elusive mob bosses in New York. The Moran family had their fingers in different pies all over the globe and were probably one of the largest crime families in the world. They controlled drug operations, trafficking, prostitution and intimidation in multiple US cities as well as the entire UK and large swathes of Europe. Joseph Moran had controlled the European side of the operation while his little brother controlled the US side of the business. After Joseph's death in Manchester by British police in the late 1990's, his wife and young daughter had disappeared, presumed either dead or returned to the family in New York. And yet, here stood the daughter, all grown up, with a strong British accent and covered in blood after a beating from her Uncle's goons.

"Why is your uncle trying to kill you?" Jamie asked, his mind trying to comprehend everything that was happening.

"He's not. Those two idiots thought I was skimming the tills at the new bar, McLearey's, and decided to take matters into their own hands," she snorted, wiping blood from her eyes as the cuts to her forehead continued to bleed.

"So what'll happen when he finds out about this?"

"Well, he'll almost certainly have the two idiots killed for daring to lay a hand on me," she confessed, her tone a mixture of vindictive righteousness and overwhelming sadness. "The bigger problem is what he'll do when they tell him what they think is currently happening to me..."

"Because they think that right now I'm probably raping you in this very alleyway," he groaned, wondering how the hell he was going to get himself out of this mess.

"But there's the thing. I'll tell him you pretended to want to rape and murder me to save me from those idiots as you knew I wasn't skimming the profits," she told him, swaying from side to side as she tried not to faint.

"First things first, we need to get you to a hospital," he said, gently grabbing hold of her arms to stop her from falling.

"My apartment is just a block away, I'll be fine if you can just help me get there?" she suggested, knowing full we that hospital was a bad idea.

"I'll help you get there but I'm calling Eoin as well," he told her, his tone brooking no argument.

"Fine, you can do it at my place," she acquiesced with a sigh. Looping his arm around her waist, Jamie helped support Eleanor as they made their way slowly towards her apartment, trying to keep his mind off the probable consequences of his actions.

)()()()()()()()()(

Jamie opened the door of the apartment and helped manoeuvre Eleanor through it, kicking the door closed behind him. He helped her into the small living room, easing her down onto the couch before he moved into the kitchen and grabbed a towel from the sideboard. Soaking it under the tap, he wrung it out and headed back to find she hadn't moved a muscle and her eyes were closed. His pulse quickened as he knelt beside her, pressing his fingers against her throat and sighing as he felt a strong pulse. He shook his head slightly as he leant back to start cleaning her wounds and saw the half smile that was tugging at her lips.

"Thank you," she murmured, keeping her eyes closed and staying still as he cleaned the blood from her face.

"I still think you should go to the hospital, some of these could do with stitches," he told her, trying to be stern and failing.

"Hospital would be a bad idea, they'd be asking questions and my particular family are not overly welcome with the authorities," she reminded him, wincing as Jamie wiped the blood from her neck to reveal large bruises, beginning to turn purple, where at least one of the men had wrapped his hand around her throat.

"And you think that someone would do something to hurt you?" he queried.

"Yes, I know they would. Thing is, they'd be more likely to do something to me to get to Uncle Owen," she confirmed his suspicions.

"Well, I'm calling your uncle to let him know you're ok," he told her, brooking no arguments and mildly surprised when she just nodded slightly and relaxed back onto the couch.

)()()()()()()()()(

Jamie settled himself on the couch next to Eleanor and fished his cell out of his pocket. Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he went through the phone book on his phone until he found the number for Eoin Moran. Steeling himself for what might happen he dialled the number, his heart beating harder with each ring until a deep voice answered.

"Eoin, it's Jackson," he began, unsure how to tell Eleanor's uncle about what had happened.

"_Jackson, is something wrong?"_ the older man asked calmly.

"Yea, it's about Eleanor," he said, keeping his tone even.

"_What's happened?"_ he demanded, a razor sharp edge to his tone.

"She's been attacked," he advised, trying to keep the anger out of his voice and only partially succeeding.

"_Tell me exactly what happened,"_ Eoin repeated, deliberately slow and precise.

"I was takin' a run, down near McLearey's, an I heard a scream so I went to take a look. Saw Donnie Banks and Frankie James beatin' on someone," he told him, his anger obvious in his voice now.

"_Go on,"_ Eoin encouraged.

"Well, I pretended to not have seen 'em and ended up interrupting them and then they told me bout Eleanor and I pretended I'd take care of it."

"_Donnie and Frankie hurt my little girl?"_ he asked carefully. _"What exactly did they think you were going to do to her?"_

"Yeah," Jamie confirmed. "They accused her of skimming from McLearey's and thought they'd take care of it themselves."

"_And...?"_

"And they thought I was gonna have some fun with her before I killed her," he confessed, sounding a little sick at the thought.

"_They thought you were gonna rape and kill my little girl?"_ the older man demanded, his voice ice cold.

"Yea."

"_And how did they react to this?"_

"They were laughin' as they walked away," Jamie told him, knowing the consequences of what he was doing and hating himself for doing it.

"_Are you there with her now?"_ Eoin wanted to know.

"Yea, I've cleaned her up and she's restin' now," the young Reagan told him.

"_Good. I want you to stay with her for a little while, until I can get over there to see her, you hear me?"_ the older man stated, making it clear he expected his order to be followed.

"No problem," Jamie confirmed and terminated the call, heart pounding as he leant back against the couch and tried to relax.

)()()()()()()()()(

Jamie closed his eyes and took several deep breaths, wondering how he had managed to get so far over his head in such a short period of time. He knew that if he stayed put, there was a very real chance he'd be dead before sunset; as soon as Eleanor told her uncle he was a cop, he'd be finding his way to the bottom of the river with blocks tied to his ankles. He also knew that if he didn't stay, his undercover operation was blown and he'd probably end up with a price on his head.

"Don't worry, Uncle Own won't hurt you," the woman beside his murmured, drawing him from his gloomy thoughts. He opened his eyes and looked at her seriously, wondering what she meant.

"You sure about that?" he demanded, the adredaline finally wearing off.

"Yes, because your secret is safe with me," she replied, drawing in a ragged breath.

"Really?

"Yes. You have no cause to worry, Jameson Reagan. I'm not about to tell that son of a bitch uncle of mine who and what you are," she promised, snorting ironically at his stunned expression.


	3. Getting In Deeper

_**Author's note**__: I don't own 'em, I just take them out to play a little ;) Murphy's Law (known as "Sod's Law" in the UK) states "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong" and this does seem to be the case for the Reagan family quite often ;)_

_**Kinda get the feeling this might turn into a bit of Jamie whumping but we'll see lol**_

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**3. ****Getting In Deeper**

Jamie Reagan stared at the woman sat beside him in astonishment, unable to believe what he had just heard. Not only did she know he was a cop, on an undercover assignment no less, but she had just used his real name!

"How...?" he stammered, unable to get the words out to ask the questions he wanted answers to.

"There's a few things you need to know," she began, wiping the blood from her face that had continued to flow from the cuts on her forehead. Jamie leant over and pressed the cloth to her forehead, trying to stop the blood that kept flowing from the cuts.

"OK, go on," he encouraged gently.

"Firstly, which name do you want me to call you by, Jackson or Jameson?" she asked.

"Well, most people call me Jamie but it'd be best if you called me Jackson so you don't blow my cover...?"

"How about I call you Jay? That way, it can never be wrong?" she suggested.

"Sounds good," he grinned, relaxing a little as he waited for her to continue.

"Well, I won't be blowing your cover, cos if I do, you'll be blowing mine," she assured him, smiling at the stunned expression on his face.

"You're undercover too?" he gasped, his head spinning.

"Sort of, yes," she confirmed, making the snap decision that she needed to completely honest with him if they both wanted to get out of this alive.

"So, you're a cop?" he demanded, wondering again what he had gotten himself mixed up in.

"No," she told him, shaking her head. "Technically, I guess I'm a criminal but it depends on how you look at it."

"How so?"

"Both my father and uncle are international criminals," she started. "When my father died, my mother hid us away so that I wouldn't get dragged into the family business. Sadly, the family business caught up with us."

"What happened?" Jamie asked, knowing the answer but wanting to hear it from her.

"There's been a contract out on my family since before I was born but while my dad was alive, we had protection against the other families. When he died, and we ran, we were on our own. I was thirteen when they killed my mother."

"Thirteen?" he echoed, thinking of his niece Nikki and how she would have coped if she'd lost Erin at that age.

"Took me several years but I eventually tracked down the men responsible and took care of them," she told him evenly.

"So you killed them?"

"No, actually I didn't," she corrected. "I turned them over to the police, after I pursued them to tell me why they killed my mother."

"You didn't know?" he asked incredulously.

"No, my mother never told me why we moved around so much," she sighed.

"So you found out who your family was from the men who killed your mother?"

"Yep, and I handed them over to the old bill and that's when my real troubles started. Because that's when I first met Agent Falland of the FBI," she told him, her voice dripping with contempt.

)()()()()()()()()(

Several miles from where Jamie and Eleanor were talking, the two men who had attacked her were getting out of their car at Maggie's Tavern, the restaurant where Eoin Moran ran most of his business dealings from. They'd spent the trip across the city discussing what they believed Jamie would be doing to Eleanor after they left, and laughing about how badly they thought she would suffer before he finally put an end to her life. They were still laughing when they walked into the bar to report to their boss about the skimming issue no longer being a problem.

"So fellas, you took care of Eli I hear?" Eoin said, his voice deadly quiet.

"Well, not totally but she's gonna be taken care of by now," the taller man laughed.

"Yeah, unless he's taking his time with her, eh Donnie?" the shorter man leered.

"Well, she's a hottie and I heard he's one sadistic bastard so yea, maybe he's making her suffer for what she done," Donnie smirked, feeling please with himself about their work and convinced both he and Frankie were going to be rewarded for their actions.

"Eli is my late brother's only daughter," Eoin said slowly, walking towards the two men. "She would never skim money from the business, do you know why?"

"N-no, sir," Donnie stuttered, the gravity of the situation beginning to dawn on him.

"Because, with Tony in sing-sing, she is next in line to take over the business when I die," he told them quietly. "After beating my niece half to death, you then leave her in the hands of a man whom you know to be a hard-ass bastard. A man you believe was going to rape, torture and then kill my only other living family member..."

"I-I-I'm sorry sir," Frankie tried to apologise, knowing they weren't going to make it out alive.

"You will be, before I'm finished with you," he promised, smiling as several more of his men surrounded the two and began laying into them.

)()()()()()()()()(

Jamie sat next to Eleanor on the couch, listening with a mixture of awe and horror as she explained how the FBI agent had first tried to coerce, then blackmail and finally threaten her into helping him. Desperate to get someone inside the Moran family network, he had refused to take no for an answer from her. With each rebuttal of his offers, he had applied more and more pressure to her life as he believed she was the perfect person to break the family. Finally, after more than ten years of harassment and pressure, she had given in to avoid jail time for a murder she had not committed but had been framed for. It was only after she agreed to work with the FBI that she had discovered the murder victim, a member of another crime family, had in fact been killed by the very agent who had been pressuring her into helping him. She had sought out the family in New York, having 'escaped' from FBI custody, and after some checking had been accepted by her Uncle. Several years later, he had allowed her in on more and more of his business dealings, until she knew everything that was happening within the organisation. She fed Falland titbits of information every few months, allowing the FBI to take down smaller parts of the operation, but never information about the operation in New York.

"So," she concluded. "when you first came to the attention of my Uncle, and I knew you were a cop, I spoke to the FBI and pressured them into telling me who you were."

"And they told you?" he demanded, stunned by the revelations he was getting on Valentine's morning.

"No, they refused so I did some digging in the police and FBI databases and finally found out who you were," she told him, smiling at the shocked look on his face.

"So why haven't you turned me in to your uncle?"

"Because I figured that given who you are, and the family you belong to, you're much more of an asset to me alive," she said, holding up her hand to stop him and he started to protest. "No, I'm not going to put you into harms way Jamie. There've been cops sniffing around before and I've always told my uncle who they are. That leaves a lot of blood on my hands as I know some have been injured because they ignored my warnings to get out."

"How am I any different?" he wanted to know, his blood running cold at the thought of what might happen to him if Eoin found out he was a cop.

"Because the others wanted a quick bust, whereas you have put the time into this to make it work," she pointed out. "Plus, the others would not have helped me like you did today. By helping me, you will have gained the respect and trust of my uncle. If you're willing to work with me, we can gather enough hard evidence to put Eoin away for the rest of his life."

"And if I refuse?" he asked calmly.

"Then you go about your investigation and I go about mine and maybe neither of us can get all the pieces together to finish the puzzle," she told him.

"You're really not going to blow my cover?"

"No Jay, I will die before I ever let anyone know you are a cop," she promised, squeezing his hand gently.

"Then I think we should work together to get what we need to take down Eoin and the rest of the organisation," he agreed, squeezing her hand in return. With a smile, both relaxed back onto the couch, the excitement of the morning's events beginning to wear off as exhaustion set in.

)()()()()()()()()(

Jamie dozed lightly on the couch, his hand still entwined with Eleanor's as his mind went over the events of the morning. In one simple move, which his brother Danny would call stupid, he had managed to save the heir to the Moran criminal empire, gain her trust and move his undercover operation forward months. He looked at the woman next to him, who had finally fallen into a light sleep, and sighed inwardly at the impossible thoughts that invaded his mind. The memory of her voluptuous body pressed against his, when he had pinned her to the wall in the alley, set his pulse racing. Knowing he would never allow himself to let anything happen between them, he nonetheless indulged the fantasy that came into his mind. Her body pressed against his as his hands caressed her gently, slowly, letting the passion build between them until they begged each other for the release they both desired. His mind imagined every detail of her as she reached her peak; eyes closed, lips parted, breathing ragged, her back arched as he thrust into her and she cried out in ecstasy. Gasping and moaning as each wave of pleasure rolled over her, she carried him with her as they came together, lost in each other.

A knock at the door startled Jamie from his fantasies and he jumped to his feet. Face flushed from the erotic dreams he had let play out in his mind, he forced himself to build a wall around his feelings so that he would not get hurt, nor hurt her in return. The knock came again, stronger this time, and Eleanor woke, blinking up at him sleepily.

"I'll get it," he told her softly, motioning her to stay on the couch. He moved to the door, checking the peep hole and letting out a sigh that was a mixture of relief and tension. Unlocking the door, he opened it slowly, allowing entry to Eleanor's Uncle, the crime boss Eoin Moran...


	4. Protection

_**Author's note**__: I don't own 'em, I just take them out to play a little ;) Murphy's Law (known as "Sod's Law" in the UK) states "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong" and this does seem to be the case for the Reagan family quite often ;)_

_**OK, this is deffo gonna get into a bit of Jamie whumping lol Thank you to everyone who is reviewing, you guys are keeping me writing :)**_

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**4. ****Protection**

Jamie Reagan closed the door of Eleanor's apartment behind one of the world's most connected crime bosses and walked back to the couch. Eoin Moran knelt down by his niece and gently hugged her, his actions speaking far louder than words ever could about how he felt for her. He glanced over his shoulder and motioned Jamie to retake his seat on the couch. The young cop sat gingerly, wondering what exactly was going to happen now that Eoin had satisfied himself that his 'little girl' was going to be ok.

"Thank you, Jackson," the older man said quietly, still knelt on the floor. "But may I ask why you helped her?"

"I couldn't let them hurt her," he confessed, lowering his gaze.

"Why?" Eoin wanted to know.

"I..." Jamie began, trying to find the words to explain that he had feelings for the woman sat beside him, even though he knew nothing could ever happen between them.

"I see," the older man murmured, nodding slightly with a half-smile on his face.

"I-I would never dishonour her..." he stuttered, wanting to be sure that Eoin understood he would never hurt Eleanor.

"I know that. If you had been that kind of man, you would have taken advantage of her weakened state," Eoin pointed out. "Therefore, I am appointing you her bodyguard until further notice."

"I don't know what to say," Jamie replied, stunned by the turn of events.

"Uncle, I do not need a bodyguard," Eleanor piped up angrily.

"Eli, you will do as I say," the older man told her, his voice steely. "Jackson, I expect you to go everywhere she does. Do not let her out of your sight, do you understand?"

"Yes sir," Jamie responded, ignoring the venomous look that Eleanor shot him. "I'll look after her, I promise."

"Very well, then I expect you to move in here, _in the spare room_, so that you can be around 24-7," Eoin told him in no uncertain terms, stressing the spare room comment.

"Uncle, I need a babysitter even less than I need a bodyguard!" she snapped, pushing herself to her feet.

"You will do exactly as I say Eleanor! This is not up for negotiation!" the older man told her pointedly, grasping her arm in a vice like grip as he stared into her eyes. Jamie stood behind him, fists clenched, and forced himself to remain in a relaxed posture as if the encounter wasn't making him want to shoot the older man. A few tense moments passed before Eleanor's posture changed, her shoulders slumping as she acquiesced to his demands. Jamie silently released the breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding, unclenching his hands before Eoin turned to him.

"Do you need to get anything from your own place?" he queried the young Reagan politely.

"A few things is all," Jamie confirmed calmly. "I'll take Eleanor with me, just to be safe."

"Good, you can leave as soon as Eli gets changed," Eoin instructed, both men ignoring the indignant sniff from Eleanor. Jamie looked over at the injured woman, his eyes pleading with her to accept the restrictions, at least until they were alone and could discuss them with the minimum of risk. She nodded once, disliking the situation she was being forced into but accepting it, for the moment. She turned on her heel and headed towards her bedroom, leaving Jamie to know he was in for a whole lot of trouble as soon as they were alone.

)()()()()()()()()(

Jamie sat on the couch in Eleanor's apartment on the evening of Valentine's Day, watching the snow fall outside the window. A cheesy romantic movie was showing on the large flat screen TV beneath the window but he paid no attention to it, watching the lights of the city instead. His planned quiet day had not materialised; instead he had collected some personal items from the safe house that had been designated as Jackson Raven's residence for the duration of his undercover assignment. He'd learned from the mistakes made during the Sanfino assignment; Jackson had a full history including a rap sheet, residence and a dead end job that the Moran family had gotten him 'out' of. He had two mobile phones again, one to contact his family and handler, the other for the Moran family to contact him on.

Nestled against his left side was the woman he had saved hours before, cleaned up and stitch strips applied. Thankfully the beating she had received had not resulted in any broken bones and none of the cuts had been life threatening. The conversation he and Eleanor had had on the walk to his apartment had been enlightening, to say the least, but they had agreed a few ground rules for the duration of their enforced association. The fact that they were expected to spend their time together meant they could combine their handler visits to help minimise suspicion. They could also compare notes on the business operations and now that Jamie was her bodyguard, he would also be able to get an inside look into the areas only Eleanor had access to. He knew that the situation would be more dangerous for both of them, but he also knew he had to try and bring down the Moran family without getting himself or Eli killed.

The gentle murmur next to him pulled him from his musing and he glanced at Eli, smiling when he saw she had fallen asleep. He clicked off the TV and placed the remote carefully on the arm of the couch, then slid himself out from under Eli and gently picked her up. She didn't even stir as he carried her into her room and lay her carefully onto the bed, drawing a blanket up over her to ward off the cold.

"Sleep well, Eli," he whispered softly, turning on his heel and padding silently out of the room. Once in his own room, he slipped out of his clothes and folded them neatly onto the chair opposite his bed before sliding beneath the covers. As he settled down for sleep, duvet pulled up to his chin, he tried to keep his mind on the job he had to do, and not the woman sleeping soundly in the next room but as soon as he closed his eyes, the dreams began...


	5. Sunday Dinner

_**Author's note**__: Still don't own them. Have now seen the whole of seasons 1-3 so this is deffo based after end of season 3 :) Please bear that in mind when season 4 starts :)_

* * *

**5. Sunday Dinner**

Jameson Reagan, youngest adult son of the Reagan clan, walked slowly towards his father's house in trepidation. Nearly two months had passed since his run in with Eleanor in the alley and he'd been working for her uncle ever since. Every day had been spent in the bar where she worked, keeping a close eye on her as per her uncle's instruction. Each night had been spent in the spare room of her apartment, desperately trying to stop the fantasies that invaded his dreams. When he'd first taken on the new 'job' he had been worried that he'd not be able to make church or dinner each Sunday but Eion had solved that problem for him. Sunday was the day Eli did the company accounts, so Jamie got the day off. This Sunday though, he had company to Sunday dinner.

Glancing sideways at the woman walking beside him, Jamie hid a smile at the terrified look on Eli's face. He knew this was a huge step for her, facing the full Reagan clan for the infamous Sunday Dinner that he told her about each week. It was, she said, the highlight of her Sunday to hear him talking about what had been discussed at dinner each week. She always listened with a huge smile on her face, often excitedly interrupting the retelling with her own comments. The smile had disappeared last week, however, when he had gleefully informed her that she would be accompanying him the following weekend. The reason she was coming with him today was that Eion, who was always present when the accounts were being done, was away on a business trip this weekend and so no accounts were being done. Therefore, to keep up the 'protection agreement' he'd made with Eion, she had to come along to the Reagan house with him.

He climbed the steps briskly, stopping at the door and looking down to see Eli still stood at the bottom of the steps. He could see from the way she was gripping the handrail, her knuckles going white with the pressure of her grip, that she was scared of entering this environment. He descended the steps slowly, keeping eye contact with Eli as he did so.

"Eli?" he asked softly, reaching out and laying his hand on hers.

"I can't do this Jay, I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice filled with anguished tears.

"You have nothing to be scared of Eli, I promise," he assured her, gently easing her fingers from their iron grip of the cold metal.

"They're all better than me," she whimpered, her whole body shaking with her fear.

"No, Eli, they're not, they're just from a different upbringing," he disagreed, hiding his wince as she shifted her vice like grip from the rail to his hand.

"Jamie, I'm a bad person, I've done bad things..." she reminded him, her voice panicked.

"They know all about your past Eli, and trust me, they're no angels themselves," he laughed, glad to see the smile tug at her lips as his word sank in.

"Ok, if you think I can do this, let's do it," she agreed, taking a deep breath and moving forward onto the first step. Nodding his agreement, Jamie led her to the door, keeping her hand in his to offer her some unspoken moral support.

)()()()()()()()()(

"So there he is, tacklin' a man in a chicken suit with his Sargent laughin' his ass off behind him," Danny finished the tale he was tell, everyone at the table laughing hard at poor Jamie's embarrassment. Eli wiped the tears of laugher from her eyes, glancing at Jamie and dissolving into further giggles at the look on his face. Her uninhibited giggles set the rest of the adults off again and it took several minutes for the room to calm down again.

"You should write these down Danny, they'd make a great book!" Eli laughed, seeing the devious twinkle in Danny's eyes.

"No-one would ever believe it had all happened to one person," Danny countered, winking good naturedly at his younger brother.

"You're probably right," she agreed, taking a sip of her water.

"So are you looking after Uncle Jamie or is he looking after you?" Sean piped up, ever the one to talk before thinking.

"He's definitely looking after me," she grinned at the young man, happy to see his smile in return.

"I don't know, I think maybe it's a little bit of both," Jamie disagreed, winking at Sean whose grin got bigger in response.

"So, Eli, is there anything we need to know for the coming week?" Frank asked, weighing in to the more serious tone of the conversation. Head tilted to one side, the head of the family looked at the young woman curiously.

"I'm not sure," she told him truthfully. "I know Eoin is away on _business_ this weekend but I don't know what he's up to. I do know he's in Los Angeles and that trouble always follows a trip down south."

"I take it you've both checked in with your handlers?" he asked the pair, looking for one to the other and nodding slightly once he'd seen their acknowledgements. "You need to be careful, I know that there has been some movement with the other families recently and I don't want anything to happen to you..._either of you,_" he stressed.

"Don't worry Mr. Reagan, if anything goes down, I'll know it before it happens and I'll make sure Jamie is safely out of the way," Eli promised earnestly.

"And you'll get yourself to safety as well, young lady!" Frank stated, his tone brooking no argument. He kept eye contact with her until she nodded her agreement to his demand, then glanced at his youngest son and hid a smile at the determined look on the young man's face. He knew that his son would not let anything happen to the young woman whose life had inadvertently become his responsibility. As Linda got to her feet and started to clear away the dirty plates, Danny launched into yet another tale from the job that would embarrass his little brother.

)()()()()()()()()(

"Thank you Jay, it's been wonderful today," Eli murmured when they arrived back at her apartment. They'd stayed late into the evening, playing cards and drinking wine while talking over Jamie's assignment and the measures in place to protect them both. With each hour that passed, Eli had found herself liking the Reagan family more and more. Their closeness made her realise how much she had missed in her own upbringing, and how much she still missed by living with her uncle. She had opened up about her past, and about the events that had led her to New York. She had been entirely honest about the revenge she had exacted on the men who killed her mother, and had been more than a little surprised by the understanding that had come from the family all in law enforcement.

"Glad you didn't bolt at the start then?" Jamie teased, supporting her as they moved through the apartment. She leaned against him, her arm wrapped around his waist and her head against his shoulder.

"Yes, I am," she replied, poking her tongue out at him. He laughed as he steered them towards her bedroom, stopping by her open door.

"Sleep well Eli," he said, giving her a hug as he did most nights before they went to their rooms.

"You too Jay," she murmured in response, laying her hand on his cheek as he started to move away. Without thinking about the consequences, she raised herself onto her tiptoes and gently pressed her lips to his. Jamie froze, desperately wanting to return the kiss and knowing he couldn't. She smiled sleepily at him as she dropped back down and turned away, closing her bedroom door behind her and leaving Jamie's head spinning. Unhappily concluding that her kiss had been nothing more than a drunken peck with no more motive than friendship behind it, he entered his own room and got ready for bed. As he drifted off to sleep, his traitorous body and heart took the kiss and amplified his nightly fantasies, completely unaware of the similar situation in the other room...


	6. Uneasy

_**Author's Note**__: Sorry it's taken so long to get going again with this but the muse ran off and left me :( Still, all back now and I'll be trying to do at least 1 chapter per week, more if I can :) Still don't own it, so please don't sue :)_

_As always, please review to let me know if I'm doing ok :)_

* * *

**6. Uneasy**

Monday dawned clear and bright, the air feeling warmer than it had for months which signalled spring was finally taking hold. The last of the residual snow had gone and buds could be seen now, fighting to make themselves known to the life giving sun.

Jamie woke early, the erotic dreams of Eli amplified by the kiss she had given him the night before. His mind had easily conjured up a night of passionate dreams, which meant he hadn't had much in the way of restful sleep. He dressed quickly and went for his usual run, trying to get his traitorous body to stop wanting to turn around, head back to Eli's place, burst into her room and make love with her all day. He ran harder, wanting to clear his mind but as he ran, painful memories began to resurface. Memories of Vinnie swirled in his mind, the blood pouring from the wound in his neck. The half smile on Vinnie's face as the dying man reassured his partner, knowing there was no way Jamie could save him. A growl rose in Jamie's throat as hot tears flowed down his cheeks, his anger and grief still threatening to overwhelm him. He pushed himself to go faster, his lungs burning for air as he gasped back his sobs, the pain growing more intense until he stumbled. He fell to the ground, his hands and knees landing heavily against the tarmac. Blood welled from the scrapes as he remained on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably as more memories surfaced unbidden.

)()()()()()()()(

An hour after leaving the apartment, Jamie walked slowly back inside and headed towards the bathroom, hoping Eli would not yet be up so he could tend his wounds in peace. Unfortunately for him, his luck wasn't holding up and he came face to face with Eli at the entrance of the bathroom. Without saying a word, she motioned him into the bathroom and started getting a few items from the cabinet under the sink.

"Strip," she ordered in a no-nonsense tone. He drew in a sharp breath, panic rising in his chest at whether he'd be able to control himself while she tended his wounds, which she seemed intent on doing.

"I..." he stammered, searching for an excuse to refuse without letting on to her that he was attracted to her.

"Jay, you can keep your underwear on but I need the sweat pants off to clean your knees," she told him calmly, expertly hiding her own reaction to the prospect of seeing him nearly naked.

"Eli..." he began, deciding suddenly that honesty was probably the best policy in their rather unique situation.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to molest you or anything," she told him, her heart sinking at his obvious reluctance to be near her. She silently berated herself for the impulsive kiss the night before; not only had she found out he had no attraction to her, but she'd lost the easy friendship that had grown between them. "Look, if you're worried about last night, it was just a simple kiss goodnight between friends."

"That... that's good to know," he replied, a lump rising in his throat as he realised his assessment the night before had sadly been correct. Without another word, he stripped off his bloodied clothes and perched himself on the edge of the bath, refusing to meet her eyes so she wouldn't see the fresh tears that threatened to flow. She tended his wounds silently, cursing herself for her big mouth and quick words as she felt him shiver slightly as her fingers made contact with his bare legs.

"_Perhaps I'm wrong..."_ she though to herself, desperately wanting to admit that she had feelings for him and dreamt of him each night. But with him refusing to meet her eye, she knew she had to bide her time and see if he gave her any signals, subtle or otherwise, of his possible interest. Certainly, his body seemed to be enjoying her ministrations; he was getting an impressive erection and seemed to be trying to hide it from her.

"There you go, good as new," she smiled up at him as she applied the last piece of dressing to his knees. Her breath caught in her throat as he smiled in return, his eyes still red from crying earlier. She wanted nothing more than to reach out and hug him, but wasn't sure it would be appreciated after her reckless kiss the night before.

"Thank you, Eli," he smiled back, slowly getting to his feet and grabbing his soiled clothing. With a shy glance, he moved past her and headed for his room, hoping she hadn't noticed how aroused her smile and touch had made him. _"Think icky thoughts,"_ he chanted in his mind, trying to find some vision that would make his passion subside so they could head to work.

)()()()()()()()(

Jamie and Eli arrived at the bar and let themselves in, knowing they would have the place to themselves for at least another hour, maybe more. Eli went straight to the office to check on the cash boxes, as Jamie checked the exterior doors and windows, then went on to view the security tapes. Thankfully, the hidden cameras that he'd installed were still in place and untouched, which mean Eoin had not yet found them.

Once the usual checks had been made, Eli joined Jamie in the main bar and they counted the tills together, each feeling slightly uneasy at the closeness of the other. Both were distracted by their own private fantasies and, at first, didn't hear the rear door of the building open.

"Jay, did you hear that?" Eli asked, the scrapping noise she had heard getting louder.

"Yea, I can," he replied quietly, drawing the gun Eoin had given him and holding it expertly. She slipped her own weapon out from beneath the counter, tucking the slender stiletto dagger up her sleeve to hide it from sight. They padded silently through to the back of the bar, down towards the offices and both noticed the fire door was open just a crack. Hearts pounding, the pair pushed open the door of the office and stopped in stunned amazement at the sight that greeted them.

Leaning against the desk was Eoin Moran, looking exhausted with blood covering his white shirt. Beside him stood Felix McManus, Eoin's number two and his best friend since childhood. At their feet lay a body, bullet holes riddling his chest. With a gasp, Eli realised that the dead man was none other than Keven Santiago, head of the Santiago/Aneletto syndicate and Eoin's main rival...


End file.
